Lighten Up

That’s right, boys and girls, Kaptain Kelmoore. Giant-chinned, costumed “Defender of Truth, Justice, and a Balanced Portfolio”, Kaptain Kelmoore has burst onto the investing scene in his own comic book, published by Kelmoore Investment Company Comics. Kelmoore Investment Company, an asset management company that specializes in option investment strategies, is also a B/D and an RIA, and is based in Palo Alto, California. In the premiere issue, KK, whose looks are a bit reminiscent of another comic superhero (The Tick), lurks in his “secret underground bunker deep beneath the Kelmoore Investment Company Building,” where he lounges in his bunny slippers till the Options Alarm System goes off, notifying him that “some hapless investor is being confused by equity options.” And off he flies to the aid of Citizen Investor Jane, who is thoroughly befuddled at the idea of puts and calls.

The imaginative explanation of puts and calls that follows as he whisks Jane off to the land of calls and puts is a bit simplistic, but reasonably effective–although there is a slight glitch in one definition, which should be a “put” rather than a “put owner.” The artwork is colorful and clean, and the “puts” themselves–quite Continental in their Parisian-style city of sidewalk cafes–are amusing. And, irrelevantly but interestingly, the comic book even includes a recipe for Swedish meatballs (Citizen Jane prepares them in an effort to entice Kaptain Kelmoore to hang around just a bit longer).